This one is easy.
Check
Scizor @ Choice Band / Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Technician
EVs: 236 HP / 252 Atk / 20 Spe
Tera Type: Steel
Adamant Nature
- Bullet Punch
- U-turn
- Close Combat
- Knock Off / Swords Dance
There isn't much to say here. Tera Steel Bullet Punch is a OHKO, and even without Terastalizing Maushold has no way to threaten Scizor back unless it somehow got itself a +2 off using Tidy Up twice. It's also possible to regain offensive momentum by simply clicking U-Turn instead to knock out the Maushold after any sort of hazard chip damage and tank an incoming attack.
I know Choice Band Scizor was mentioned before, but it's a lot easier than saying you need Choice Band plus Terastalizing for Scizor to check it, because you really don't. If you don't want to run Choice Band or waste your Terastalization on your Scizor, you could instead click Swords Dance once, take an attack from Maushold, and fire off an immediate Bullet Punch that will kill it back and avoid Encore from locking you. The inconsistency of Scizor not KOing Maushold without Terastalizing or boosting and the potential for it to be KOed if it switched into a full-odds Population Bomb is the sole reason why it's a check and not a counter.
Counter
Garchomp @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Rough Skin
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Tera Type: Fairy
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Stealth Rock
- Dragon Tail
- Spikes
How did nobody mention this one yet?
Any time Maushold hits Garchomp with an attack, it will lose 29.167% health per hit from Rough Skin and Rocky Helmet, meaning it can only land a maximum of 4 hits of Population Bomb, which can never KO Garchomp unless either the Garchomp is under half HP after a +1 or the Maushold somehow reached around +4 or higher. All Garchomp has to do is click Earthquake once and leave it at 26% - 31.5% from full health or swat it away with Dragon Tail and reset the conditions, meaning Maushold can't deal meaningful damage to it before knocking itself out or even try to keep boosting itself to reach a threshold to threaten back. Tera Fairy is a unique option that Garshomp can afford to run to force Maushold in an unwinnable situation by making it unable to try and reliably hax its way out with Bite flinches. Furthermore, if you want to trade Speed for more physical defense investment, Garchomp can continuously threaten to keep hazards on board, while the only way for Maushold to deal with it is to Encore the Garchomp, reach +6, let a layer go through, and knock both the Garchomp and itself out because of the recoil required to do so by the 4th hit, meaning you at worst always win against Maushold at full health and at best force the opponent to keep an entry hazard on their side of the field. (You will need max HP investment and at least 188 Defense EVs and Neutral nature for this.) Bottom line: There's no safe way for Maushold to play around Garchomp coming in and forcing it to die to its own recoil.
Check
Scizor @ Choice Band / Heavy-Duty Boots
Ability: Technician
EVs: 236 HP / 252 Atk / 20 Spe
Tera Type: Steel
Adamant Nature
- Bullet Punch
- U-turn
- Close Combat
- Knock Off / Swords Dance
There isn't much to say here. Tera Steel Bullet Punch is a OHKO, and even without Terastalizing Maushold has no way to threaten Scizor back unless it somehow got itself a +2 off using Tidy Up twice. It's also possible to regain offensive momentum by simply clicking U-Turn instead to knock out the Maushold after any sort of hazard chip damage and tank an incoming attack.
I know Choice Band Scizor was mentioned before, but it's a lot easier than saying you need Choice Band plus Terastalizing for Scizor to check it, because you really don't. If you don't want to run Choice Band or waste your Terastalization on your Scizor, you could instead click Swords Dance once, take an attack from Maushold, and fire off an immediate Bullet Punch that will kill it back and avoid Encore from locking you. The inconsistency of Scizor not KOing Maushold without Terastalizing or boosting and the potential for it to be KOed if it switched into a full-odds Population Bomb is the sole reason why it's a check and not a counter.
Counter
Garchomp @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Rough Skin
EVs: 252 HP / 4 Def / 252 Spe
Tera Type: Fairy
Jolly Nature
- Earthquake
- Stealth Rock
- Dragon Tail
- Spikes
Any time Maushold hits Garchomp with an attack, it will lose 29.167% health per hit from Rough Skin and Rocky Helmet, meaning it can only land a maximum of 4 hits of Population Bomb, which can never KO Garchomp unless either the Garchomp is under half HP after a +1 or the Maushold somehow reached around +4 or higher. All Garchomp has to do is click Earthquake once and leave it at 26% - 31.5% from full health or swat it away with Dragon Tail and reset the conditions, meaning Maushold can't deal meaningful damage to it before knocking itself out or even try to keep boosting itself to reach a threshold to threaten back. Tera Fairy is a unique option that Garshomp can afford to run to force Maushold in an unwinnable situation by making it unable to try and reliably hax its way out with Bite flinches. Furthermore, if you want to trade Speed for more physical defense investment, Garchomp can continuously threaten to keep hazards on board, while the only way for Maushold to deal with it is to Encore the Garchomp, reach +6, let a layer go through, and knock both the Garchomp and itself out because of the recoil required to do so by the 4th hit, meaning you at worst always win against Maushold at full health and at best force the opponent to keep an entry hazard on their side of the field. (You will need max HP investment and at least 188 Defense EVs and Neutral nature for this.) Bottom line: There's no safe way for Maushold to play around Garchomp coming in and forcing it to die to its own recoil.
Last edited:
Landorus-T
+ Tera Steel 
by 
by 
+ Weak Armor 
by 
by 
by 
by 
by 
by 
by 
by 
by 
by 
by 
